Final Crayfish Pictures

Greetings from Room 10,
      I am including photos that I took on Thursday of the children in their crayfish groups.  They have thoroughly enjoyed working with their crayfish pals.  I believe that have learned a great deal about these interesting little creatures.  Learning how to tell the difference between a boy and girl crayfish proved to be a fun lesson.  Here is the outcome:

      Following are the crayfish groups and their little friends.  Unfortunately, our classmate, Connor was not feeling well and not in school the day I took the photos.  We were thinking about you, Connor, and Flipper says "Hello!"

CRAYFISH!

Greetings from Room 10!
     It was a pleasure having the opportunity to meet you on Thursday night and to share information about our class. Teaching 5th grade is a gift that keeps on giving!  I LOVE IT!  Speaking of Open House, if you did not have the opportunity to provide your name, phone number and email address on the form that was going around (I believe this applies to four families), could you please email Julie Sasso (Grady McSharry's mom) with the information. She can be reached at juliesasso@verizon.net.
     By the end of day on Friday, 25 of the 26 students in 5B had touched, held or picked up the crayfish.  The kids LOVED experimenting with them. They brainstormed ways to test the crayfish's senses, tried a variety of methods and inferred what their reaction meant.  It was really neat to listen to the children discuss possible tests and watch them experiment. We spent about an hour with our class "pets."  Please be sure to ask your child about the crayfish experimentation.  Here are some photos of the kids with their crayfish!

     Your child should have brought home his/her spelling test and weekly spelling grade sheet.  As you can see, I grade each of their five assignments out of 10 points for a total of 50 points, and their spelling test is worth 50 points.
     I also sent home the Nature's Classroom information letter.  Please send in both the permission slip and $100 deposit by October 17th.  If you plan to apply for a scholarship, please contact our school nurse, Mrs. Betzhold.
     The children begin choir on Wednesday. They will go to choir with Mrs. Platek in lieu of recess. 
     Please remind your child to have you sign their weekly reflection and put it in their red binder to return tomorrow!!!
     Have a wonderful week!                              Lester Betor and class 

The First Full Week of School 2014-15

Greetings from Room 10,

     During the first full week of school, we were very productive.  Although we have only been working together for a mere seven days, I feel like we are establishing a sense of community in Room 10.  It is nice to see the children working together harmoniously.  Did they mention to you that I am very impressed by their enthusiasm when it comes to morning singing?  Your children LOVE to sing and have already learned 3 new songs!  They especially like songs from The Sound of Music.  

     Did your child tell you about DARE?  Detective Kenneth Beck came into our room twice last week.  This year we decided to try something different and have invited Detective Beck to teach DARE two times each week.  We believe that the children might benefit from this approach and look forward to an earlier DARE Graduation.  I will keep you posted on the date and time as we progress.

     This coming week will be our first official week of spelling.  Each Monday I will pre-test the children on priority words and cluster words (i.e., AD prefix) and they will take any words they missed during that initial assessment. All children will have 10 spelling words weekly which will include any words they miss and/or challenge words.  Spelling homework is nightly, and I will give them a score out of 10 points.  They will take their spelling test each Friday.

     The crayfish arrived earlier in the week.  We started with 13, but sadly, we have lost a couple.  The children have learned about the anatomy of a crayfish, which included a cut & paste vocabulary activity.  Eventually, they will be quizzed on the vocabulary and the anatomy of a crayfish.  This week, they will have their first opportunity to hold the crayfish. Last year NO ONE would touch them.  We shall see how this group reacts.  They are really weird looking creatures who prefer to walk in reverse.  

     I am including some photos of the children working in the classroom.  We are actively preparing the room for Open House which is this Thursday evening at 7:30pm.  In addition to spending about 45 minutes in homeroom with me, you will attend a 15-minutes presentation by your child's math teacher and a 30-minute Nature's Classroom informational meeting.  I look forward to seeing you Thursday at 7:30pm!                  Sincerely, Lester Betor & Class